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Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is one of the main domesticated cereals. For this reason, barley seeds have been found in numerous archaeological sites, and since the mid-19th century have been available in numerous natural museum collections. About a hundred years ago samples were collected in the African countries of Eritrea and Cyrenaica (now Libya), and have been preserved as ex-situ in the museum collection "L'Orientale" of the University of Naples. The varieties of contemporary barley selected for comparative analysis were grown in Tuscany and are used in the production of craft beer. To ascertain their vitality, the ancient and contemporary seeds were placed in Petri dishes to hydrate under a sterile hood at room temperature after a sterilization procedure. Morphological and ultrastructural observations performed on the aleurone cells of the ancient samples presented vital cells. The extraction and purification of DNA from seeds produced results while the genotype comparison of ancient and contemporary barley varieties enabled the construction of a dendrogram of similarity, useful in describing barley from museum genetic heritage collections and in providing a molecular imprint of extant varieties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the late Roman Republic period (2nd–1st century BC), in the area of San Giovanni on Elba Island, previously subject to intense extraction of iron ore, a rustic villa was established by Marco Valerio Messalla, a supreme Roman magistrate. The foundations of the walls were discovered and excavated by an archaeological mission. Palaeobotanical analysis of a set of stratigraphic layers was performed. Palynological slides showed remains of palynomorphic and non-pollen objects, while data combined with anthracological investigations confirmed the hypothesis that in the 1st century AD the villa was destroyed by a fire that created a compact crust under which were discovered four broken Roman amphorae containing about five hundred apple seeds. Comparisons of archaeological and fresh seeds from reference collections showed discontinuous morphology except for one group of archaeological samples. DNA was isolated from seeds that had well-preserved embryos in all groups. DNA extracts from archaeological, wild and modern domestic seeds (controls) were amplified by PCR and tested with SSR molecular markers, followed by genome analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Preliminary studies of historical sources and remote sensing were used to identify ancient olive trees near archaeological sites and heritage buildings in the Orcia Valley (Siena, Italy). Distinctive characters were assessed by traditional pomological observation. Trees with similar characters were selected on the basis of the features of endocarps, the only structure that survives aerobic deterioration and conserves useful botanical information for centuries. Non-invasive morphometric analysis of endocarp size and shape established morphological variations in individuals of different populations. Plastid organization in the endocarp and location of DNA in the endocarp tegument were detected by morphological and ultrastructural observations using light and electron microscopy. Cytoplasmic markers with high polymorphism were used to test similarity of endocarp and leaf DNA within individuals and to confirm low variability and minimal divergence between individuals. The ancient trees studied showed the same allelic profiles and therefore belonged to a distinct cultivar. The traditional pomological descriptions of the trees, leaves and fruits, morphometric analysis of size, and shape elliptic Fourier analysis of endocarp outline, ultrastructural observations and allelic profiles of endocarp tegument delineated the general species-specific qualities of the cultivar “olivastra Seggianese” of the Orcia Valley. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]